Release International

One year after the outbreak of religious violence against Christians in Orissa, India, many Christian refugees are still living in temporary camps and slums, unable to return to their homes. 

Meanwhile attacks are continuing elsewhere in India. Karnataka and several other states report growing communal violence. 

Release International is calling for prayer that the forgotten Christians of Orissa will be able to return and live in safety, a year after Hindu militants attacked and drove out more than 50,000 from their homes. 

Release CEO Andy Dipper travelled to India to meet Christians who are still unable to go back to their shattered villages, for fear they will be killed or driven out again. 

In one small town in Orissa state he found 100 Christian families who had been forced from their homes, just ten kilometres away. 

‘The violence had been carefully planned,’ he says. ‘Hindus in the village put saffron flags on their houses, so that the rioting mob passed them by. Trees were cut down and laid on the road to slow down the police. 

‘The houses of the Christians were completely destroyed, as was their church building. Hindu militants have now built a temple on the same site.’ 

The Christians had been given temporary shelter in a camp for the displaced. But that was closed after just two months. The government is also closing other camps across the state, leaving the Christian refugees with nowhere to go. 

Between 1,000 and 4,000 are still living in tents. Many others have drifted to the slums of Orissa’s capital, rather than risk returning to their homes where they could be attacked once again. The militants have told them that they can only go back home if they convert to Hinduism. 

Although these refugees face an uncertain future, they remain faithful in their Christian witness. 

Aparajita, not her real name, told Andy Dipper: ‘To know and suffer for Jesus is valuable. Suffering for Christ is worthwhile. We have a burden that one day these people will know the Lord, so we must remain here to share His word with them.’ 

‘I pray that God will let people go back to their homes,’ said another refugee, ‘to live as Christians, and will keep their children safe with health and education. I pray for the persecutors, that God will touch their hearts, show them the bad they have done and bring them to faith.’ 

‘Let’s add our prayers to theirs,’ says Andy Dipper, ‘that the Christians of Orissa - forgotten by the state but not by their brothers and sisters - will be able to return to their homes in safety. Let’s also pray that Hindu fundamentalists will respect their right to freedom, as guaranteed under the Indian constitution, and that the government will strive to protect their right to live in peace.’ 

Andy Dipper tells the story in the latest edition of Release magazine, available from Release International, which serves persecuted Christians worldwide. 

‘There is still much need for prayer,’ he adds. ‘While the violence has subsided in Orissa, official sources report a growing number of attacks against Christians in Karnataka and four other states.’ 

November 15 has been designated the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP). ‘Please ask your church to join us in prayer for persecuted Christians at IDOP on November 15,’ adds Andy Dipper. 

Release has produced a range of resources for IDOP. These include the DVD Faith Under Fire: India, and are available from www.releaseinternational.org 

ENDS 

NOTES TO THE EDITOR 

Pictures and captions are available for download from: http://release.thirdlight.com/a.tlx?k=44ezesm 

Release Partners, the All India Christian Council, have produced an estimate of the extent of the damage caused last year. The figures they give are:
·        315 villages attacked
·        4,640 Christian homes destroyed
·        70 killed
·        18,000 Christians injured
·        54,000 made homeless 

For a country profile on India, please go to: http://www.releaseinternational.org/pages/country-profiles/india.php

For further information please contact Release International on 01689 823491 or by email at info@releaseinternational.org 

And for more information on Release International please go to: www.releaseinternational.org 

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